crackling
/ˈkɹæk(ə)lɪŋ/
crackling noun: fat that, after roasting a joint, hardens and crispens. Also the present participle and gerund of crackle.
Noun
crackling (countable and uncountable, plural cracklings)
- Fat that, after roasting a joint, hardens and crispens
- For the first time in his life […]he tasted crackling.1823, Elia [pseudonym; Charles Lamb], Elia. Essays which have Appeared under that Signature in The London Magazine, London: […] [Thomas Davison] for Taylor and Hessey, […], →OCLC
- The crispy rind of roast pork.
- To make chicken crackling, use 500 g (1 lb 1V2 oz) chicken skin. Wash and remove excess fats.2011 February 28, Arlene Diego, Step by Step Cooking Filipino: Delightful Ideas for Everyday Meals, Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd, →ISBN, page 54
- A crispy, fried skin or rind, especially of pork.
- ... but often forgotten are the equally delicious chicken cracklings. In this recipe, baguette slices spread with a delicious maple and sea salt butter are baked, then topped with crispy pan-fried chicken skin, sweet soft dates,[…]2016 October 4, Eva Kosmas Flores, Adventures in Chicken: 150 Amazing Recipes from the Creator of AdventuresInCooking.com, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, →ISBN, page 26
- The making of small, sharp cracks or reports, frequently repeated.
- the bangs and cracklings of fireworks
- Food for dogs, made from the refuse of tallow melting.
- Three stripes of velvet worn on the sleeves of students at St John's College, Cambridge.
Adjective
crackling (not comparable)
- Sounding with small, sharp cracks or reports, frequently repeated.
- —With wreathing spire
Up went the crackling flame,—and that old man
Forgetful of his anguish, boldly cried
—"Courage, my brother!—we this day will light
Such fire in christendom, as ne'er shall die."1827, Lydia Sigourney, Poems, Latimer and Ridley, page 68
- —With wreathing spire
Also used as
crackling is also the present participle and gerund of crackle.
crackling meaning in Thai
crackling in Thai
- crispy pork rind
- หมูกรอบ mǔu-grɔ̀ɔp
Examples of crackling in a sentence
- She was delighted when she heard the crackling sound of the eggs hatching.
- The old vinyl record made a crusty crackling sound as the needle hit it.
- There was a crackling sound in the vicinity of my right ear.
Synonyms of crackling
- cracklin(s)
Forms of crackling
| plural | cracklings |
|---|
Origin of crackling
By surface analysis, crackle + -ing.
Words formed from crackling
Phrases with crackling
Questions about crackling
- What does crackling mean?
- Crackling means fat that, after roasting a joint, hardens and crispens.
- What is crackling in Thai?
- Crackling in Thai is หมูกรอบ (mǔu-grɔ̀ɔp). See Crackling meaning in Thai.
- What part of speech is crackling?
- Crackling can be a noun or an adjective.
- How do you pronounce crackling?
- Crackling is pronounced /ˈkɹæk(ə)lɪŋ/.
- What is the plural of crackling?
- The plural of crackling is cracklings.
Words near crackling in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: crackling (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-crackling.wav, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Wodencafe-crackling.wav.
Cite this entry: “crackling.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/crackling. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.